Acceptance
by bando2
Summary: Young Kingsley Shacklebolt confronts his past and makes decisions about his future.


Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling et al. No copyright infringement is intended and no profit is being made off this work.

A/N: This Kingsley is based of a character I rolplayed in a community on livejournal therefore his family history and school details that are not provided in cannon have been filled in by me for my own purposes and serve to flesh out his character. Unbeta'd all mistakes are my own.

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Acceptance 

18 year old Kingsley Shacklebolt let out a rare curse and then winced as he reached down to message his ankle. He hated trick stairs. Luckily he ha only been a few steps down from the top and he' managed to jerk his foot up in time. What kind of Auror would he be if a stupid trick stiar he had known about since first year got him?

He shifted his bag and pulled out his wand. He murmured an icing charm he had used on a few of his housemates who were on the Quidditch team and felt the pain recede slightly. He debated a numbing charm, but decided the pain would be f a good reminder.

He knew his mind was too full and he needed somewhere to think. Somewhere that wasn't filled with the stress and tension of upcoming exams. He paced the hallway and began to think not realizing that he had been pacing back and forth in the same spot until a door appeared in the wall. He gripped his wand and pushed the door open.

He gasped standing frozen in the doorway, and his hand tightened around his wand until his knuckles were white. He was staring at the exact replica of is father's shop. It looked exactly as he had last seen it those eight years ago when he, his sister, and his mother had gone to clean it out. He swallowed hard; it looked like his father was going to comeback any second.

Quickly his eyes scanned the room looking for trouble and then his brain kicked in. He was still inside Hogwarts and Voldemort— for Kingsley refused to fear a name— could not touch him here. He relaxed noticeably and walked further in, the pain in his ankle demanding he sit down.

He threw himself rather haphazardly onto the rugged couch that was perpendicular to the back wall and formed the third wall of the makeshift office where he had spent so much time as a boy.

Out of habit, and because he really didn't want his sister nagging at him when he eventually got down to the Great Hall, he swung his leg up, shoved the old brown pillow under his ankle and reapplied the icing charm. Then he reached into the bag he had dropped by his side and pulled out the letter he had received this morning.

_Dear Mr. Shacklebolt,_

_It is my duty to inform you, that, pending completion of your NEWT level exams in June and receipt of your scores by the Ministry you have been accepted into the Auror training program beginning July 1, 1981. _

_You understand that due to the severity and danger of present times we ask all Auror candidates to carefully and fully consider the risks of such a position before they accept it. We await a return owl no later than June 30__th_

_Alastor Moody,_

_Auror Recruitment Office_

There was a hand scrawled note at the bottom and that was what most intrigued Kingsley.

_You came highly recommended by both Filius Flitwick, and Albus Dumbledore. Don't let them down, boy. But make your own choices. AM_

His mother was already living most of the year in the United States feeling threatened by the rising darkness and having given up magic long ago. His sister had one more year of school left here and then she was going to join her mother. Celia was adamant that there was nothing tying her except to England except a war she hated, her brother, and her school. Once school was over and hopefully before the war was, she could be convinced to go and live with their mother.

Yet Kingsley knew he had to make his on decisions; just as the letter had said. The need for Aurors was overwhelming especially if they were offering him a spot a moth before school was out and before exams were taken. He had heard of the new rules about what they were allowed to do if they found Death Eaters. He felt sick to his stomach t the thought,

But they couldn't all be bad especially if he glanced at the letter again, if this Moody paid enough attention to add a hand written note.

He looked around his father's shop once more and he though of his father's disdain for violence, he thought of the world outside that would have hated the man he loved, but most of all, he thought of the sad faces of his housemates and schoolmates who had lost someone they loved. He had read in the newspaper that Amelia Bones who had knew had been in Hufflepuff and a few years older than him had lost her parents and her brother's whole family.

He wondered if she had lost all her living relatives,

It was then that he realized that this couldn't go on. He had to help stop it and this was something he could do.

Just like that his choice was made. Because no one should loose their whole family.

He refolded the letter and stuck it in his bag.

Puling out a quill and a piece of parchment he scribbled a reply. He tapped his ankle until it was supported in a makeshift splint and then stood and shouldered his bag.

He looked around the room one last time his eyes moist.

"Don't worry dad, I'll take care of them. I'm sorry but I have to do this. I love you."

With that he was gone. It was time to tell Celia what he had decided.


End file.
